Women’s Hiking Boot Awards Announced by OutdoorGearLab.com

CHEYENNE, WY – OutdoorGearLab.com announced today the results of its 2012 Editors’ Choice awards for women’s hiking boots. Nine top boots were compared in an exhaustive testing environment that evaluated the following categories: weight, stability, traction, comfort, water resistance and durability.
The testing involved a year of High Sierra peak bagging, approaching climbs in the Moab area, and hiking the Pacific coast. Reviewers found the best light boots, best heavy boots and best values in hiking boots. Each boot underwent extensive side-by-side comparisons. View the complete Women’s Hiking Boot Review

The winners:
Lowa Renegade GTX Mid – Winner of the Editors’ Choice award for 2012 for women’s hiking boots. According to Gear Editor McKenzie Long, “The Lowa Renegade wins our Editors’ Choice award for being light, comfortable, having the most versatile purchasing options, and some of the most clever features. Its stabilizing monowrap frame and seamless Gore-Tex lining both contribute to the function while keeping it lightweight and making it even more comfortable than it would have been otherwise.”

Keen Targhee 2 – Winner of the Best Buy award for 2012 for heavier boots. This award is given to a product that balances a high score in our tests and a reasonable price. According to Long, “Known for its sandals, the Keen company does surprisingly well with its hiking boots. The Keen Targhee II wins our Best Buy award for being the most comfortable, high functioning boots for the least amount of money. They are waterproof, supportive, and offer tons of toe protection.”

Asolo Power Matic 200 – Winner of the Top Pick award for 2012. According to Gear Editor Long, “The La Sportiva FC Eco 3.0 wins our Top Pick award for Best Day Hiker. Immediately when putting it on, your foot breathes a sigh of content at being in such a comfortable, non-restricting space. The light weight and extremely flexible forefoot allow for the best range of motion of any boot in this review and make you feel like you are springing along the trail unimpeded. It weighs almost exactly the same as other light hikers we were impressed with such as the Keen Targhee II Mid and the Lowa Renegade.”

Asolo Bullet GTX – Winner of the Top Pick award for 2012. According to Long, “The Bullet wins our Top Pick for Best Backpacking Boot because we favor lighter boots over heavyweight boots such as the Asolo TPS 520 GV, and these offer protection and support for heavy loads and long distances while staying relatively lightweight.”

OutdoorGearLab LLC, headquartered in Cheyenne, Wyoming, is dedicated to creating the world’s best outdoor gear reviews. The company’s website is a free resource for people who love the outdoors and participate in activities such as hiking, climbing, backpacking, and camping. The company performs side-by-side testing of outdoor gear and publishes the results in comparative reviews. Each product is scored across a range of weighted categories, competing products are ranked, and awards are given to top performing products.